by Неизвестный
He began compiling a list of tests and procedures to perform on the latent vampire. Even if the treatments proved completely unsuccessful, there was always more to learn. After this trip to the Arctic, Karon would be harvested and then sacrificed like any other subject.
* * * *
Council Chair Woodard read the latest fax from Florian on Murrough Island. A broad grin swept his features. So General Kai had begun an affair—with an island royal, no less. This was perfect. A male like him would go to any length to protect his paramour. Things were falling into place far sooner than he could have expected. He opened his laptop and typed an email.
Pierson,
You are free to begin captures as soon as your boat enters Svalbard. Murrough Island’s coordinates and suggested collection sites are attached. Happy Hunting!
Kind regards,
Elijah
Chapter 7
Kai strode like an emperor through the Glass House’s wide hallways, tray of food in hand. Though Alara had insisted he sleep in his own room, he’d woken early and requested breakfast from the kitchen staff. Each person who passed nodded a polite Good Morning, and the dragon responded to each with warm greetings.
His steps were springy, and that grin kept creeping back to his face. Images of the earlier night flashed through his memory. Arousing pictures of Alara in the throes of passion alternated with sweet memories of the talk and caresses they’d shared afterward. He couldn’t wait to see her again, to feed her and see her smile, to press his lips on hers.
When he arrived at her door, a pleasant thrill of nerves rolled through him. He wasn’t sure how one normally behaved in these situations, but his romantic success last night reassured him that he’d figure it out. His knuckles rapped smartly, and his breath caught in his chest as it opened part way.
Alara’s rumpled hair stretched along her body in a tangled mess, and her face was still puffy and dented from sleep. She looked beautiful—sexy and innocent. Those cool-blue eyes hovered half closed with tiredness. She kept the door mostly closed, not allowing him to enter.
“What are you doing here?”
Something about her tone wiggled a needle of dread into him, but he stood firm and smiled. “I brought you breakfast. I mean- I brought us breakfast, to eat together.” He thrust the tray toward her. The small vase holding a red carnation wobbled at the movement.
She frowned, and her eyes rolled. “You don’t seem to be clear on the concept of a one night stand.”
He’d never heard the term before, but the part about “one night” was clear enough. “So, you mean to say that after last night–”
“We go back to the way things were before. You and I have a professional relationship. You’ll finish your observations and return to Dragon Headquarters.”
He only really heard the first sentence of her response. “How could we return to how things were before? That’s not possible.” He sputtered, incensed that she’d deny him the very thing she offered, nay—forced upon him—last night.
“People do it all the time, dragon.” Her tone was distant, bored. He wanted to shake her, kiss her, do something to remove this cold mask she wore.
“I have a name, Princess. You should remember, you screamed it many times last night.” He leaned toward her, planning to push her back into the room, push her back onto the bed.
She shoved a hand out, knocking his shoulder back. Her voice dripped sarcasm like acid. “Well, thanks for the fuck, Kai. It was great. Yay, you! Now finish up what you’re here for and go home.” With that, she slammed the door.
* * * *
A thick funk of guilt settled on Alara’s shoulders as she turned from the door and back to her friend.
“Looks like you’ve earned yourself an admirer, sweetheart,” Erling observed from behind the Style section of an imported New York Times. “So, you invited me to breakfast to protect you from jilted lovers and moon-eyed dragons? Or are you going to make it worth my time and spill the deets?”
She shrugged. “Nothing much to tell. It was fun.” Alara hoped her voice sounded less wistful to Erling’s ears than it did to hers.
With an eye roll, her friend put down the paper and started buttering a croissant. “Really? I’m going to need more than that. Was it any good? Was he talented in any specific department? Hung like a walrus? For the love of Odin, you’re going to have to do better than ‘fun’. If I had…”
The crash of Alara’s door slamming into her wall drowned out Erling’s words. The dragon stalked in and grabbed Erling by the neck, lifting him slowly, till the male mere’s toes skimmed the floor.
Kai’s voice rasped and growled, devoid of all humanity. “Why are you here?”
The corded muscles in the dragon’s neck strained, and his biceps bulged under Erling’s weight. His face betrayed murderous rage. Alara fought a soft swell of arousal, and wondered if maybe she’d bit off a little more than she could chew when she’d taken him on.
She laid her hand against him arm, trying to calm whatever beast had been unleashed. “Kai. Erling is my friend. We were just having breakfast. Please put him down.”
The dragon blinked rapidly, his teeth grinding, but he softened his hold. Erling shoved against the dragon’s chest viciously, landed on the floor, and pressed a hand to his sore neck. The males faced off, each with his chest heaving in anger. With a snarl, Erling launched. Alara stepped between them, arms out.
“E—that’s not a good idea.” When he struggled to get closer to the dragon, Alara grasped the front of his shirt. “I’m sure Kai will apologize, E.” She turned to the taller male. “Won’t you, General?”
Alara heard his teeth gnashing. “My apologies,” he bit out, clearly not meaning it.
Erling glared, but shook off Alara’s hand. He collected himself, and then shot an assessing glance at Alara, then at Kai, then back to Alara. He snorted. Turning to the door, he said. “You two have fun!”
With dread, Alara realized she and Kai were alone again. His muscles still strained in anger under his black T-shirt. She wanted to lick each and every one of them. But getting naked with a visiting dragon after a night of post-Games drinking was one thing. Doing it in the light of day, stone-cold sober? That was something else entirely.
Kai growled. “You did not…you were not intimate with him?”
Much as Alara didn’t feel it was any of Kai’s business, in the interest of stopping another fist-fight she said, “No, I was not intimate with him this morning.”
Those fathomless eyes swung to her. “But you have been at another time?”
Her shoulders rolled forward as she groaned. “Well yeah, but that was ages and ages ago. He doesn’t even like girls all that much anymore.” When Kai’s forehead knit together, she clarified. “He likes boys, I mean males.”
Kai’s mouth fell open, and he turned green. “That does not occur in the dragon population.” His eyes flickered, seemingly playing out various scenarios, each one frightening him more than the next.
Alara took pity on him even as she rolled her eyes. “Of course it doesn’t.”
The dragon gulped and then took a deep breath, turning to her. “So he was the one who marked you? And then he abandoned females?”
She winced. “Well, no. But Erling came shortly after. And E didn’t exactly abandon females altogether. It’s a small island, and beggars can’t be choosers. There’s always a female trying to turn that ship around.”
Kai’s face betrayed hurt, then disgust. She’d forgotten that expression, though she’d seen it enough the first day he arrived. At first, his censure had been funny—a challenge. Now it cut her like a knife. “Get the fuck out of my room.”
She saw a flash of something in his eyes as he turned to leave, then Kai paused, holding the doorknob. Alara could have sworn he would say something, or that his head would bow in guilt, but he swung the door open and stormed out.
Well, that didn’t go exactly as planned. Alara shook her head, ridding herself of a barra
ge of unwanted feelings. He’d left. That’s what mattered. And clearly he’d absorbed the fact that it was a one-night-only deal and that he was one of many. Good times.
She stood up and head to the bathroom to prepare for her day. A warm shower, a shave of her legs, and Alara would be good as new, ready to regale her friends with tales of her latest conquest, and laugh about the dragon’s prudishness.
Just as she started the shower her phone beeped out the emergency ring tone. Kaylee’s voice blasted through the line. “Alara. Two little girls disappeared from the Southeast quadrant early this morning. They swam off a distance from their friends and never returned. It’s only been a few hours but I thought you should know.”
Her heart beat hard in her chest, and her lips narrowed to a thin line. Oh fuck, not again! “Call the lieutenants together. One hour, in my office—and make sure the dragon doesn’t hear anything about any of this.”
* * * *
Kai prowled the bow of a sixteen-foot motorboat as Olaf steered through the outer edges of Murrough Island waters. The impromptu tour of the island’s boundaries appeared a diversion to keep him away from Alara for the day, but the dragon didn’t mind. He couldn’t bear to be near her. The hours he’d spent alone with her had been the most exciting of his life. But to think that she’d shared that experience with another…and more than one…
A great void yawned in his heart and mind, mirroring the barren, icy landscape around him. He hardly understood what Chair Woodard wanted from these mere. The island was perfectly fine without dragon interference, and Alara was perfectly happy without him.
Kai turned to Olaf. “This has been very interesting, but I would like to return to shore. I need to contact my superiors.” Perhaps if the Council Chair felt that Kai had collected enough information, Kai could leave for headquarters right away. A short “Goodbye” to the king, and he could return to dragon form and cut through water for the five day journey home.
When they got back to shore, he retrieved his cell phone from the changing room. The sooner he left, the sooner the empty pulsing in his chest would cease. In fact, upon his return he would demand a bride. His mate would love him, and he in turn would shower her with affection and care. They would be happy, contented, not suffering and tormented and burning up inside.
After only two rings, the Council Chair answered. “General Nasu, good to hear from you, I’ve been calling you all morning.”
“I’m sorry Chair Woodard.” He shot an angry glance at Olaf, who was still docking the boat. “I was out of cell phone range. I want to request to end this assignment early.” He tried to continue, but was interrupted.
“That’s impossible, Kai, not with the kidnappings that have occurred.”
Kai’s eyes widened in surprise. “What kidnappings?”
When the Council Chair answered, his voice oozed concern. “The kidnappings of the little girls, of course. You should have been informed. Perhaps you don’t have the ear of the right people.”
Kai simmered in irritation that Alara had kept information from him. He doubted it had been an oversight. “When?”
“Two were taken last night, and I believe another was kidnapped this morning.” Woodard paused. “The forces on the island likely need help. I can arrange for a group of soldiers to come as early as tomorrow morning.”
Kai knew that Alara would never invite outside interference, but he also knew the mermaid was too stubborn for her own good. Bidden or not, he would help her. His men would swoop in and save the day, and Alara would blush and stutter in gratitude. A picture of her happy face welcoming him into her arms and her bed flashed in his imagination.
“Yes, Chair Woodard, please send them. I’m sure the mere will be grateful.”
* * * *
Karon watched the little meres' chests rise and fall as they lay intubated on their cots. They’d almost drowned during the capture, turning to human either in panic or as the result of Dr. Grathers’ new invention, the attractant purified from pixie dust. Thank God Karon only used a fraction of the dose recommended. Otherwise he may have killed more mere than he caught.
The children awaited transport to a nearby research facility, but Karon dragged his feet about making the call. He imagined Gracie’s voice pleading with him to release them. The succubus was like a fucking conscience he didn’t need.
With a word to Doc Rouger to keep the girls sedated and comfortable, Karon trudged up the metal grate stairs toward the upper level of the boat. When he reached his office, Gracie sat on his desk awaiting his arrival.
“Hi, John.” She looked healthy enough. He didn’t want to wonder if that was still the effects of the time she’s spent with him or if she’d broken her “no sex with crew” rule.
“Hey, Gracie. What’s up?” Maybe she’d come to say goodbye. He stiffened his lips at the thought.
“There’s volcanic activity in Iceland so I’m stuck onboard till the smoke clears.” She looked down as she said it. He noticed a bit of red around the edges of her hazel eyes. “I hope that’s OK with you. It’s so cold here. I don’t want to have to stay in town.” Her voice held a plaintive edge. Karon’s heart thumped hard in his chest. He’d ask her to stay forever if she could handle his work.
He only replied. “That’s fine.”
She nodded stiffly. “John, what do you know of the vampire government?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Well, the succubi are very poorly organized. We have local Madames who deal with local disputes and communicate with Madames from other areas. But I’ve heard the vampire senate has a lot of power and influence.”
Karon saw where she was going and raked his hand through his hair in frustration. “Even if I did have contacts in the senate—which I don’t—they are in favor of Dendric’s work. Latency is a big issue in the vampire community, and they have high hopes for Grathers’ cure.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Yes, they’ll be glad to hear it works.”
He felt the color drain from his face. “Regardless of whether I tell him or not, the senate won’t fight Dendric no matter what stolen files you send.”
Gracie’s perfect mouth twisted into a pout. “You could petition them, tell them how he tortures his subjects. They have human connections—influential human connections!”
Karon stroked her arm. “Gracie, they’re vampires! They don’t care if members of other species get tortured. In fact, they don’t care if vampires get tortured! You need to understand, no one is going to stop Dendric’s work. It makes too many people too much money. And I hate to say it, but they do cure a lot of normal human diseases, too.”
Gracie huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. They’d had this argument before, and each time got them even more nowhere.
She then walked to the door, brushing past his sleeve-covered arm on her way. The contact caused her to stop then look up at his face. “John…” Her eyebrows knit together as if she was searching for something. “Have you been eating enough?”
He knew what she saw. The mirror showed his skin sallow and sunken around the eyes. His lips had a bluish hue. “I’ve been eating fine. Just not people.” He said it with a laugh, but Gracie looked concerned.
“John. You know that you need to have blood now, right?” Her voice was sweet, soothing. It tempted him to wrap his arms around her and kiss her lips to taste her concern. He pulled away a few inches.
“Yeah, but I live on a boat. I can’t chow down on the crew. I can’t handle that kind of staff turnover.” He scrubbed at his scalp at the thought of it.
Gracie’s hands were on her hips now. A grumpy expression marred her pretty face. She turned her head to the side and lifted her hair, exposing the pale olive column of her neck. Luscious blue veins pulsed just below the surface, calling to him. “Drink already!”
A wave of desire overcame him, and he pulled her to him. Her long, lean body pressed against the length of his. His fangs descended as his cock rose, both pulsing with the desire to pene
trate. He pulled back, his want tempered with alarm. “You asked me not to do this.”
She shrugged. Her eyes were sad, but her mouth curled hopefully. “We all change our minds at some point.”
* * * *
Florian waited in his room for the Skype communication with Council Chair Woodard. He hated being ignored. Soon enough, everyone would learn to stand up and take notice of him. Finally, the small beep issued from his laptop computer, and he clicked to answer the call. The face of the human-form dragon stared at him from the other side of the video chat. The chairman’s coloring was pale for a dragon, a medium shade of tan, and his hair was cut in a short, conservative fashion. He looked more like a newscaster than a warrior.
“Florian, Elijah here. What’s the status?”
Florian winced at Elijah’s harsh tone. He wasn’t the dragon’s servant. “Things appear to be going according to plan. Alara was unable to find any leads on the children today. She seems good and fucked.” He chuckled to himself about his double-meaning. “One question, how is the boat staying so well hidden? It must be pretty big, but it’s not even showing up on radar.”
The Council Chair’s freakishly handsome face pulled up into an evil smile. “Dr. Grathers has developed both visual and auditory cloaking technologies similar to the ones used by mere habitats.”
Florian clenched his teeth. He didn’t like the idea of humans replicating his abilities. “When are your men arriving?”
“Tomorrow morning. I wouldn’t advise you share this information with anyone. It’s best if it comes from General Kai.” The Council Chair spoke slowly, like Florian was too stupid to understand.
“Of course. The men love Kai. They think he’s like some kind of superhero or something.” His eye twitched in irritation. The dragon had won the respect and admiration of half the island in just a few days, while Florian had lived his whole life overlooked and overshadowed.
“And Florian, I’ve been thinking. You should enlist Alara’s help in the overthrow,” Elijah said in an offhand manner, as if his suggestion wasn’t an insult.